Hans De Bosschere

“With my degree in mechanical engineering, option climate control, I first worked for 16 years for installation companies and then 7 years at another engineering office. I started at the Ingenium Group on 1 April 2020, during the total corona lockdown. On my first working day I saw only Nicolas (CEO) and Jan (COO) when I came to pick up my working equipment here, and was then sent home.” (laughs) “It was a 'special' start, but I was really welcomed here with open arms, even though I was sitting in my little home office. Many colleagues inquired how things were going and whether they could help with anything. And if I had a question, they took the time to explain everything well.”

“I found the job application procedure quite remarkable. It was not one conversation with someone from HR, but I was invited a total of 3 times by different people who each time listened to me and told me what the Ingenium Group stands for and where it’s going. It was not the 'sales show' I’ve experienced at other companies seeking to attract people in the war for talent. The people I talked with really tested whether I would fit into the picture and feel good here. And I was also pleasantly surprised that afterwards I was asked to give feedback on the application procedure myself.”

“As a project manager in one of the two teams working for private clients, I stay in contact with the client from the initial sketch design of the installation through to completion. In the tender phase, I also assist the customer in price negotiations with contractors. Internally, I manage the colleagues who prepare and implement the file – design engineers, BIM modellers, site supervisors and administration – and it’s me who takes care of the invoicing.”

“In addition, I’m responsible for the planning in my team and the private client cluster. I have to make sure that no one has too little work, and that those who have too much can be relieved by other teams or colleagues. It’s an exciting job in which I’m in contact with all areas of the company, including HR to initiate recruitment when the workload becomes too heavy, and with Sales to accelerate or slow down the acquisition of new projects. What strikes me strongly: in many companies people would say: 'This assignment has to be finished by then, just plan how you're going to do it.' At Ingenium, solutions are sought together, and we detect early in the planning stage if something is about to go wrong. Great care is taken to ensure that no one takes too much on his or her shoulders.”

“Here you get a lot of opportunities and nothing is imposed. On the contrary, the question is reversed: 'We are looking for someone to take responsibility for task x or y: who feels called and why?' There is so much to do in the Ingenium Group that you hardly ever have to do anything you don't enjoy doing. In that large group of colleagues there’s always someone who excels in certain tasks and wants to support you, and always with great pleasure. So you are not 'steered' from above, but there is a large menu to choose from.”

“The employee is central, and if he/she feels good here, the rest will follow automatically. And I still experience that way of working every day. When a new file is assigned to someone, or when you get the chance to take on responsibilities, you are listened to very carefully and people act on what you say. When you apply for a job, these are words you often hear, but in practice you should take them with a grain of salt. But at Ingenium, the opposite is proven every day. My choice for the Ingenium Group was quickly made! That human, holistic approach was the main reason I chose the Ingenium Group.”

“I get the greatest satisfaction when a project is finished and everyone who worked on it is rightly proud. Not all members of the operational team participate in all projects, so we inform and inspire each other by regularly highlighting a project within the team at our biweekly team meeting. That team spirit is important. Our team is spread over the 4 offices, so you don't see every team mate every day. That’s why we regularly make time to see each other, online and physically.”

“One of my concerns beforehand was that each team here is responsible for its own figures, planning, knowledge,… Wouldn't that create competing internal engineering offices, and would the figures then not become more important than what you deliver? This does not appear to be so. The interaction between the teams and the exchange of knowledge and experience is something that is given a lot of time and attention.”